Destiny or Disaster?
by Shadowed Outcast
Summary: Harmonique is about to face a new future with Clopin but how will she and the King of the Gypsies cope?
1. Default Chapter

Ok this is my attempt at a Hunchback of Notre Dame fanfic. I do not intend to be a writer or anything of the sort, this is just so that I can use my imagination and share it.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunchback of Notre Dame, which is copyright Disney or the original book and concept which is copyright Victor Hugo. I only own the character of Harmonique and other various characters, which will appear as time goes on. Most characters are owned by Disney. 

Alrighty then now that that's been said on with the story. Please R&R or I won't know if I should continue writing. Thank you. 

1419. A fantastic life about to end or an even better one about to begin?

This is the question that Harmonique Eternaire had been asking herself for the past 2 years and, as she sat on the steps of the famous cathedral, it seemed that the answer to that question was seconds away. As she looked out across the crowded square and watched the Parisians go about their daily duties she recalled the reason she was here and how a simple trip to Paris 2 years ago had turned into a nightmare… 

1417. Rene Eternaire and his performing troupe of gypsies descended a dark, dank staircase. He had brought his troupe to Paris and more precisely, the court of miracles, to meet up with some old friends and to hopefully find a suitor for his daughter. His daughter, Harmonique, was becoming a burden to him. It wasn't that he didn't love her, because he did, but he felt that it was nearing the time when she should get married. Although she was only 16 she could already sing, dance and act with the ability of a professional and drew in large crowds when she performed and with the crowds came a lot of money. Rene would've thought twice about seeking a suitor for her if she had been more generous with the money that she earnt, as she cold easily have supported him for many months with what she earned in a week, but she refused to give her father anything. She'd tell him that if he needed more money then he would have to work harder. Harmonique was not selfish in any way, she just felt that it was unfair for her to work hard all day long and then give her takings to someone who hadn't been bothered to go out and work. This was not the only problem that Rene had with his daughter. When she was a little girl, she had been very obedient and well behaved up until the age of about 14. It was then that Rene had met another troupe of travellers looking to join a group and, being the man he was, Rene accepted them into his clan. They were all well behaved and brought a lot of profit into the group. There was however one problem, a group of lads in the group all aged around 15, some a bit younger others a bit older. They'd seemed harmless enough at the beginning but soon enough they became quite a nuisance to Rene.

_1415. The new group of performers had been with the Eternaire family and their original clan for 8 past moons. Harmonique had mainly stayed away from them, only talking to them if they spoke to her. She had noticed a few of the boys from the new group watching her when she performed and as she rehearsed and she knew that as they were walking away they had been talking about her. What they had been saying she didn't know nor did she care. She had always been reserved and quiet off-stage. Never wanting to be around other people and often she was found staring into the sky, lost in her own thoughts. And on that mild September evening that's exactly what she was doing. She sat up on a hill and watched the sun as it melted down out of sight and the night began to set in. She jumped as a hand touched her shoulder and turned around to see who had startled her. Towering over her stood the group of 9 boys who had been watching her performances over the last few days. Feeling daunted by them she stood up and straightened her skirts out as she faced them._

_"I'm sorry for startling you Harmonique", the boy who had touched her shoulder apologised whilst the others obviously tried to contain their laughter. The boy who spoke to her was a couple of inches taller than herself and had dark black hair, which nearly came to his shoulders. His eyes were an emerald green and his skin was the usual Romany colour. She knew that his name was Christien. Harmonique looked at each one, studying their face before politely asking what they wanted and then, without even waiting for an answer, sat back down again with her back to them._

_"Do you mind if we join you?" another asked._

_"If you wish but I warn you that I am not much company", she said with complete seriousness._

_The boys all sat down around her, forming a circle. Harmonique was not happy that they had joined her but she hadn't had much choice. If she had told them to go away then she would have had her father to deal with and she didn't want to disappoint him._

_"Are you always this quiet?"Christien asked her._

_"I did warn you that I'm not very good company." was her reply._

_"But you're so different on the stage, when you dance and sing."_

_"That's because I'm not being myself, I'm being someone else, someone with different opinions and views. You're all actors you should understand what I'm talking about."_

_"Oh you've seen us perform?" he enquired with a cheeky grin._

_"Yes"_

_"And…?"_

_"And what?"_

_"What did you think?"_

_"You're very good." She paused to think "I wish that I could act like that."_

_"Well it's funny that you've said that because we've been watching you perform.."_

_"I'd noticed." she interrupted._

_"Well we've been discussing how good you would be at acting and that's what we came here to ask you."_

_"What have you come here to ask me?"_

_"We wondered if you'd let us teach you how to act and then you could perform with us but you're obviously not the person we thought you were so maybe we should just forget it." They all moved to stand up but she called to them._

_"Wait. What do you mean I'm not the person you thought I was?" They all sat back down again._

_"Well we thought you were more" he paused, searching for the right word "Lively. At least that's how you appear to be on the stage."_

_"Well doesn't that just show how good I would be at acting? I mean, if I could fool all of you then I could fool anyone, right?" she said tactfully. This last sentence caught Christien off guard but he was delighted by her initiative and there was no way that he was going to give up on her now._

_"A fair point. So does this mean that you will let us teach you?"_

_"No." she shook her head._

_"Why not?" one of the other boys questioned._

_"Because girls aren't allowed to act and you know it. If I was to act no-one would pay me any attention and I'd probably get arrested."_

_"But don't you want to act?" She thought for a moment._

_"Yes. I would love to act more than anything but I couldn't"_

_"Why not?"_

_"Well I wou.."_

_"What's stopping you?"_

_"My father would kill me and I just.."_

_"I'll tell you what's stopping you. Your conscience is stopping you. Oh well I guess you just want to be silent and unnoticed all your life." Christien smiled to himself knowing that there was more to her than what she was letting on._

_"No you're wrong." She shouted. The other boys were quite shocked by her outburst but Christien was pleased, knowing that now he would see what her true personality was. "I don't want to be one of those quiet, boring everyday people who blend into the background. I want to stand out and be noticed. I want to be different and most of all I want to shock people and do what I want, not what other people tell me to do. I want to break free."_

_"And you can. Stick with us and you will be. We don't let anyone tell us what to do. We support ourselves and don't need anyone else's help." Christien crouched next to her and draped an arm around her shoulders._

_"That's the life I've been dreaming of all my life." She spoke quietly._

_"Well we can make your dream come true. You too can be strong and independent. We will teach you all of this if you agree to let us. So what about it?"_

_"What's the catch? You're not going to just teach me all of this for nothing so what do you want?"_

_"My, my you are clever." He turned to his friends "She will be easy to teach. All we ask is that you perform with us once we have taught you. That's all."_

_"That's all?"_

_"Yes. So have we got a deal?"_

_"We have a deal." He reached out his hand and she shook it, confirming the deal. Then, unexpectedly, he hugged her and whispered into her ear "You're going to make a fantastic rebel." He let go of her and she smiled._

_"Well we might as well start to get to know each other better now." One of the other boys said and they all began to introduce themselves._

_"I'm Thiere"_

_"I'm Michaèl"_

_"I'm Luc"_

_"I'm Paule"_

_"I'm Adrien"_

_"I'm Farcè"_

_"I'm Stefan"_

_"I'm Adaim"_

_"And I'm Christien"_

_"You all know my name." She said matter of factly._

_"Yes but we've sort of abbreviated it." Paule said._

_"What to?"_

_"Harm." They all said in unison._

_"Harm?"_

_"Yes we thought that sounded more rebellious and dangerous" Farcè explained._

_"Well I can't argue with you there."_

And that's how it all began. Over the next few months the boys taught Harmonique how to act, fight, stand up for herself and do what she wanted. Rene had begun to notice a change in his daughter and it wasn't for the better. Over the next year she became more and more rebellious. She no longer performed with her family but instead she chose to act with the group of lads, with whom she had become great friends. Rene had constantly objected about her acting but she would pay no notice to him so he stopped nagging her about it. The only thing that he asked of her was that when they went to Paris to meet some of his old friends she did not do any acting. She promised to obey him.


	2. Chapter2

1417. The troupe of performers entered the Court of Miracles. Rene and the others walked on, most having seen the great underground haven before, but Harmonique and the boys all stood in the entrance, entranced by what lay before them. They all smiled at each other, knowing what the others were thinking.

"We could have some fun here boys" Harmonique grinned.

"Wrong. We will have some fun here." Christien chuckled.

As they ran to catch up with the rest of their group Harmonique noticed a boy, who looked only a few years older than herself, surrounded by a bunch of girls and laughed at all of their innocent, naïve faces. The boy himself stopped talking to the girls around him and watched as a beautiful young girl, who could only be a couple of years younger than himself, ran past laughing with her friends.

"Excuse me m'mselle's but there is something that I must go see to." And with that he sprinted off in pursuit of the girl he had just spotted.

Harmonique rummaged through a trunk of clothes and cried out in triumph when she found what she was looking for. It was now evening, not that anyone would have been able to tell in the court of miracles. People were still bustling around meeting with friends, cooking and drinking. The troupe had settled in. They had been allocated several tents to sleep in but there were several people in each one, not that it mattered because they were very spacious. The boys and harmonique were all sharing the same tent. Earlier they had all met Anton Troulliefou, who was the King of the court of miracles and of gypsies, and all of his family all of them, that is, except his eldest son and heir, Clopin. Anton was also one of the men whom Rene had come to see. Rene had known Anton for many years before he left the court to seek a different life many years ago. It had been requested by Anton that the troupe entertained the court that evening, as it was a tradition that any visiting performers put on a show for their hosts. This had completely slipped Rene's mind and Harmonique kindly offered to perform. Rene was slightly hesitant to agree but Anton thought that it was a splendid idea and Rene couldn't argue against his king. So Harmonique and the boys all went off and pretended to put something together. Little did Rene know that they already had something in mind.

It wasn't long now until Harmonique and the boys would be expected to start their performance. They all stood in their costumes and talked about what they were about to do.

"Your father is not going to like this." Adaim stated.

"Good. Look just because he won't like it doesn't mean that everyone else will hate it." She reassured him.

"No but I think we can all agree that there will be several objectors."

"That's never stopped us before. We do what we like, remember?" she laughed, "Well this is it. Lets go." And with that she walked out with the others walking behind her.

       Meanwhile, in the centre of the court, people were forming a circle ready to watch the performance. Rene was seated with Anton and the rest of his family including Clopin, who had decided to show up. Rene studied Clopin for a minute. The young boy was 18, had jet-black hair and his eyes were just as dark. He sat on a pile of cushions, propped up on his elbows with his long legs stretched out in front of him. He looked thoroughly depressed and bored.

"Has Carla not travelled with you this time?" Anton asked Rene as he passed him a glass of wine.

"No. Carla died three years back." Rene answered coldly.

"Oh I'm sorry Rene." He paused "How did your daughter take the news?"

"All too well." He shook his head.

"What do you mean?"

"At first she was quiet and didn't talk about it much at all, but that was normal for her. She's always been quiet. Then, well she changed."

"Changed? How did she change?"

"I think you're about to find out." Rene signalled as Christien walked into the performing circle, directly in front of them. The whole court fell silent as he began to speak and Rene put his head in his hands as he prayed that they would not disappoint him.

"Madams and Mesuirs I am very pleased to introduce to you Harmonique Eternaire." He signalled to his right but no one appeared. " Harmnoique Eternaire." He said louder and signalled again but still no one appeared.

"You idiot!" a voice suddenly called out and a girl walked on from the left. "The only thing that you had to do was introduce me and signal to the left and you muck it up. Well congratulations."

"You told me to signal to the right." He shouted back as she approached him.

"No I didn't"

"Hey you two we've got an audience. What do you think you're doing?" Adaim called as he, and the rest of the boys, joined them.

"I don't care about the audience." She stated.

"Obviously not. This was your last chance Harmonique and you've blown it."Paule said.

"You're not talented enough to perform. You haven't got a clue." Christein said spitefully.

"That's because I had you for a teacher. How am I supposed to learn anything from you if you can't even earn enough money to buy a loaf of bread?"

"You've changed Harmonique. You used to be fun and kind but now you're just a contemptuous, conceited bitch and I hope you rot in hell just like your mother." He spat out at her. Anger flared through her and she looked around for something. Seeing what she wanted, she ran towards and picked up a sword, which was lying on the ground near her. Seeing this, Christien took a sword from one of the gypsies watching.

"No-one ever talks about my mother like that." She screamed as she approached him, brandishing her sword.

"Harmonique you put that sword down right now," Rene shouted at her, standing up. He couldn't believe what they were doing or what they were wearing.

Harmonique was dressed in a full-length dress, which bared her shoulders and hung very low. The bottom was multi-coloured and translucent up to her mid-thigh and the top half was turquoise. The other boys were all dressed in a matching tunic and hose in one of the colours from her dress. René looked around at the spectators. Most looked shocked and Anton looked disgraced. The only one who seemed interested at all was Clopin, who was now sitting up straight and was watching which great enjoyment.

"You stay out of this papa. I can fight my own battles." And with that she flung the sword at Christein who managed to block it with his own. All of the other boys moved far out of the way and watched as Harmonique and Christein began a spectacular sword fight. René couldn't believe it. They had really disappointed him and embarrassed him this time. Anton and all of the other inhabitants of his court watched rapturously as the fight developed. Each swing more powerful than the last and each strike more tactful than the one before. But as hard as each of them tried the other always managed to block their attempt. All that could be heard was the sound of their swords clanking together. Clopin watched in amazement, as did the other gypsies, as Harmonique overpowered Christien, knocking his sword out of his hand and pushing him to the dirt floor. The crowd held their breath as she towered over him with her sword pointed towards his throat. Then she moved the sword away and gave him her hand to help him up. The crowd couldn't understand what was going on and were delighted when the couple took a bow. The whole court burst into applause as they realised that what they had just seen _was _the performance. As they took another bow, harmonique noticed Anton stand up, still applauding and walk towards them. She also noticed her fathers face. René was furious, mainly because she had fooled him as well as everyone else. He could hear Clopin cheering and laughing next to him.

"Monsieur is that young lady part of your troupe?" the young lad asked him.

"She is my daughter."

"She is very talented." He commented.

"I suppose you could say that although I would say that it's a matter of opinion." He grumbled. Clopin was just about to ask René what he meant when his father called for silence and everyone stopped applauding and talking.

"I think that we can all say that none of us have seen a show that good for a long time." He said and the crowd cheered again, he put his hands up to get silence. "I am delighted to have you staying in my court and I'm sure you will all be welcomed warmly. Now" he paused and grinned "Lets drink." There was another cheer as people began to disperse to start up fires, get bottles and meet with friends.

Anton led Harmonique, Christien and the rest of the boys to a fire under the large stage where Pierre's wife and children were already seated with her father, who looked far from happy. As they walked nearer, Clopin moved over to make room for Harmonique to sit down. There were large cushions spread across a large area of the floor for them to sit on. Harmonique sat down next to the boy she had seen earlier that day. He was very tall and thin yet muscular. His black hair fell to his shoulders and his eyes were dark and mysterious. Harmonique found him to be quite handsome. She smiled as she sat next to him. Anton introduced his family. There was his wife, a thin and short woman with a kind face, called Lisette. Then there were his two daughters, his oldest who looked exactly like her mother and was called Celeste. The younger was called Grazielle and had a twin brother called Eteinne. Then there was Robard, their second oldest son and finally Clopin who introduced himself and kissed her hand. She smirked at him and the other boys laughed as he did so before introducing themselves. Robard began to talk about their performance and Harmnoique received several words of praise from the king's family especially from Clopin. Several different conversations started up then. Robard and Celeste talked with the boys about their acting and the twins and Clopin questioned Harmonique about her fighting skills.

"How old is your eldest now?" Rene asked Lisette and Pierre.

"Celeste is 20 now and betrothed too." Lisette answered.

"All of our children are betrothed to someone." Anton added with a smile then his smile faded "all except Clopin. He has plenty of admirers but he won't pick one."

"That's because I don't like any of them." Clopin interrupted, having been listening to the conversation "Just because they admire me doesn't mean that I admire them."

"Well if you don't find someone soon then I'll pick someone for you." Then he added with an evil grin "And it will be the ugliest girl in the court." Clopin sighed. He didn't like any of the girls in the court. They were all too innocent and naïve for him. None of them understood him. He wanted to get married, yes but not to any of them. There hadn't been a single girl in the court that he had fancied since he had been born but today that had changed. He looked across at Harmonique. She was quite tall, he guessed about five or six inches shorter than himself and he was a good 6 feet. She had pale skin, which was tanned a healthy golden brown and had long blonde hair, which hung in ringlets, framing her face. She was obviously half Romany and half gadje. She was very attractive and had a fiery spirit. Clopin found that he wanted to get to know her much better. He listened as Rene told his father of Harmnoique's sudden change in behaviour over the last couple of years. Clopin's interest in the girl was growing by the second. After a few minutes he noticed that she wasn't talking to anyone and looked very bored.

"So ma cheri, I suppose you have not seen much of the court today." Clopin lent across a large pile of cushions to talk to her.

"No not really. I would be very interested to see more of it."

"I could show you around, if you'd like me too."

"Yes I'd like that very much." She jumped at the chance. 

"Why don't I show you now?" he smiled charmingly at her.

"That sounds like a good idea." She agreed enthusiastically, grateful for the opportunity to get away from her father. Clopin smiled to himself, that was much easier than he had thought it would be.

"Excuse us papa," he said to his father as they stood up and walked away.

Clopin led Harmonique around the back of one of the rows of tents where, much to his and her relief, it was deserted.

"Merci Clopin" she said, "I thought that I'd have to sit with them all evening. They're so……… boring. I can't stand sitting around with them and having to make polite conversation. No offence to your parents but I can't stand it."

"I understand" he smiled even though he was slightly disappointed that she'd only agreed to go with him to get away from his parents. Well at least he'd maybe be able to get to know her better.

"So are you really going to give me a tour?" she asked

"Only if you wish me to."

"Yes I'd like that."

He led her around the court, showing her the bathing tents, his family's tent and the various merchant stalls. She seemed to be paying great attention to everything he said but every time he would ask her a question about herself she'd quickly change the subject. He sighed with frustration as he ran out of places to show her and realised that they would have to return to his parents and that it had been a complete waste of time.

"Well that's it" he sighed and began to head back to the fire.

"Nonsense." She said, "You haven't shown me any of the more secret places in the court."

"Secret places?" He walked back towards her.

"Yes. Where do you go when you just want to escape from it all?"

"Ah. Follow me." He had forgotten about showing her this place. It was only him who knew that it existed and he went there often when he didn't want to speak to anyone. It was a hole in the wall of the court, which was high up behind the stage. No one could see it because there was a large piece of material draped from the ceiling, which covered up most of that wall including the entrance. Clopin had made a rope ladder to access it and he offered to help Harmonique up but she climbed up it easily by herself.

She was amazed when she got up there. Cushions and rugs were strewn across the floor and cloth was draped from the ceiling to the walls. She also noticed a table with several bottles of wine and a few empty ones on it.

"It's very nice," she said as he stood next to her "You must spend a lot of time up here."

"I do. The best part is that I can see across the entire court."

"You can? How?" she looked around and there was no way of seeing outside. Clopin took her over to the piece of cloth, which covered the entrance and lifted up the small flap that he had cut in it. Her face lit up as she looked out through it. The whole court was laid out before her like a little model village. Clopin put the flap back down again.

"That was amazing." She said.

"Well it comes in handy."

"I'm getting the feeling that I'm going to be spending a lot of nights up here over our stay." She sighed and lent against the wall.

"Really?" Clopin chuckled and put his hands either side of her head, so that he was also leaning against the wall. He stared deep into her eyes, which, like his own, were dark and mysterious. "Well I shall have to make sure that I am up here with you." He smiled and lent forward to kiss her. Harmonique ducked under his arm and out of the way. Thinking that she was just playing he went after her and came up behind her, wrapping his long arms around her waist and kissing her neck. She broke out of his grasp and slapped him hard across the face.

"If you try that again then I'll have no choice but to hurt you." She said strongly and climbed down the rope ladder. Clopin stared after her in disbelief. No one had ever turned him down before or slapped him. Normally the girls were throwing themselves at him. He was angry and hurt. Who was _she_ to turn _him_ down? He wasn't going to give up. Over the next few days Clopin spent a lot of time with Harmonique and, to his relief, she acted as if nothing had happened.

    Anton had been badgering his son to choose a fiancé for far too long, so he was thrilled that evening when Clopin strolled in that evening and told him that he'd found the girl he wanted to marry.

"Thank God!" Anton had cried out "Who is she?"

"Papa, I wish to be betrothed to Harmonique Eternaire."

"Very well." Anton said, very pleased with his son's choice. Anton liked Harmonique; she was polite, clever and very talented. She would bring in a lot of money top the court as well but Harmonique also had a strong spirit which none of the other girls in the court had. "I will go and speak with Rene now. I'm sure he will be very pleased that his daughter will be wed to the future king." And Rene _was_ pleased. He was glad that he would not have to put up with his daughters rebellious ways for much longer. He also knew that she would have a good life in the court and that Clopin would take care of her. It was arranged that Harmonique was to return to the court in two years time, when she would be 18 nearly 19 to get wed to him.


	3. Chapter 3

1419. That's why Harmonique had returned to Paris. She looked at the tiny woven map, which hung around her neck disguised as a necklace, and sighed. She had tried to argue against her father but he wouldn't hear any of it from her. She didn't want to be married and especially not to a stranger, whether he was a gypsy prince or not. She thought about all of her friends, who she'd had to leave behind, unlikely to ever see them again. Her friends had rebelled against her father as well but it had not helped. She had tried to run away also but her father always found out and kept a close eye on her.

It was now early afternoon and the sun beat down on Harmonique. She stood up and walked down the steps, following the map. Soon she came to a cemetery, which she remembered all too well. She moved the stone cover off of the fake tomb and descended the stairs. She made her way along the dark and foul catacomb tunnels until suddenly the light from her torch went out. Before she could figure out what had happened, the tunnel was flooded with light and several guards, dressed as skeletons, ambushed her. One came up behind her and twisted her arm behind her back, causing her to wince with pain.

"Well look at this." One laughed "A little spy and a female one at that. Clopin will be pleased."

"Yeah, the one day his father leaves him in charge and we haven't had any intruders, well at least now he's got someone to hang." Another chuckled. Before she could speak, the guards gagged her and dragged her off in the direction of the court. Up on the stage Clopin Trouillefou sat on a crudely made throne, picking pieces of fluff off of his hat. His father had left him in charge of the court for the day whilst he went to the next town to sort out some important business. This was the only chance that Clopin would get at being king for at least 3 or 4 years, and absolutely nothing had happened. When he saw the court's doors fly open and the guards drag in a prisoner he was very excited.

"Bring them up here" he called out and the guards did as he asked. At that time of day the court was nearly deserted because everyone was up on the streets earning a living. The guards brought her before the gypsy prince and she rolled her eyes as he smirked at her.

"Well, well what have we here?" he asked, stroking his newly grown goatee.

"A spy" one of the men grunted out. Harmonique tried to say something but remembered the gag around her mouth.

"There is nothing that you can say which will save you now" he laughed and ordered two men to prepare the gallows. Seeing that she was getting nowhere she kicked her leg up backwards, hitting the guard who held her where it hurt most. Then when he let go of her she flung around and punched the other one who stumbled back and fell over.

"Well that's a lovely welcome for your fiancé." She said, removing the gag from her mouth.

"What?!" he asked fearing that he had just made a bad mistake that he was going to regret.

"I said well that's a lovely welcome for your fiancé."

"My fiancé?" He looked at the girl. If it was Harmonique then she had certainly changed over the last two years. Her skin was still tanned a golden brown and her blonde hair still fell in loose ringlets down to her mid back. She was taller than before, then again so was he, she was only a few inches shorter than him. She stood looking at him with her hands on her hips. He looked into her eyes and realised that it was her and that he had made a big mistake.

"Harmonique I'm so sorry it's just that I can't trust every-"

"No" she interrupted "I'll tell you what it is. I've been travelling here-by foot for 4 days with barely any food or drink. I've been chased by the guards 3 times, shouted at by gadjes and walked through ankle deep sewage to get here so that your guards can ambush me and then you can nearly hang me. That is what it is Monsieur Trouillefou"

Clopin sighed and told the guards to return to their duties.

"I'm sorry that you've had a bad journey but we were not expecting you today"

"Obviously, even though it is the day that our fathers agreed on."

"Well I shall speak with my father about that when he returns. Why don't you go and get cleaned whilst it's quiet?" He offered to take her bag but she kept a firm grip on it. He could see that getting her to like him was going to be harder than he thought and it was going to be even harder now, after the introduction he had just given her. He led her to the bathing tents and walked back to the stage when she had gone in.


End file.
